Former EMT charged with refusing to help baby who died

A former emergency medical technician has been charged after medical response was delayed to a Detroit home where an eight-month-old girl was having trouble breathing and later died.

The Detroit News reported that prosecutors accused Ann Marie Thomas, 45, of intentionally delaying her response to a medical call on May 30, 2015.

Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy announced Wednesday that Thomas faces a charge of willful neglect of duty, which carries a maximum penalty of up to 5 years in prison. The charges were filed November 30, but weren't publicly disclosed until the former EMT was charged, WDIV-TV reported. "You know how these families get".

Another EMT unit was dispatched, but the child died that day.

Thomas continued to refuse, and the second EMT vehicle rushed the child to the hospital, according to the lawsuit, which said that by then, Wright-Trussell had already begun CPR.

Thomas was sacked by the city in June of that year. An April 28 pretrial hearing is scheduled. Though the civil suit against the city was dismissed in November, it is unclear whether the city paid out a settlement to the mother.